Bag handle feeding machine



Dec. 19, 1950 A. WILLIAMS 2,534,893

BAG HANDLE FEEDING MACHINE Filed Jan. 8, 1949 '4 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. how 4. W/LuA/w haw, a mum...

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Dec. 19, 1950 A. WILLIAMS 2,534,893

BAG HANDLE FEEDING MACHINE Filed Jan. 8, 1949 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 may 5 5 I7 WA? INVENTOR. lww A. WILLIAMS Dec. 19, 1950 l. A. WILLIAMS 2,534,893

BAG HANDLE FEEDING mourns Filed Jan. 8, 1949 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTOR. Ira/v A. WILL/Am:

lqfforne a Patented Dec. 19, 1950 BAG HANDLE FEEDING MACHINE Ivan A. Williams, Portland, Greg, assignor to Cushion Grip National, Salem, Oreg., a corporation of Oregon Application January 8, 1-949, Serial No. 69,886

1 7 Claims. invention comprises a machine for ated operations on strip material old he required to punch articles from cardboard, wood, or other mateay be so formed. The particular ent of the invention herein illustrated is for the production of shopping bag -s from strips of cardboard, pasteboaru, or similar inatzrials, but it is not to be construed as being 1 d thereto. Handles formed in accordance with the present machine are illustrated and claimed in the patent to Crary, No.

dated September 17,, 1949.

rincipal object of the present invention is The present performing re such as stop from the bottom of a stack into 1g or other forming apparatus.

'iy described which will operate upon sheets or material which are so formed as to be permanently curved. Such strips in the partic plication of the invention comprise short strips or sheets of pasteboard which are cut from .a longer strip which has been rolled into a tight roll thus imparting a permanent set to the material. Vhen a plurality of such sheets are stacked upon each other the center of the lowermost sheet of the stack is considerably below the ends thereof so that a conventional feeding mechanism canu not be employed. The principal object of the present invention is to provide means whereby the feeding mechanism may accommodate itself to the curvature of the strips within a range of curvatures.

A further object of the present invention is to provide feeding mechanism of the character described which will positively insure the feeding of successive strips in abutting relationship to each other. In accordance with the present invention, a plurality of dogs each successively engage one strip to perform the step feeding operations, and a finger is brought into action to initiate movement of a succeeding strip when the last of the series of dogs is operating upon the first strip.

The foregoing and other objects and advantages of the present invention will be more read ily apparent from inspection of the following specification taken in connection with the accompanying drawings wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout, while the features of novelty will be more distinctly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a front elevation of a machine em bodying the present invention;

Fig. 2 is an end elevation thereof;

Fig. 3 is a horizontal section taken substantially along line 3-3 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a rear elevation of the machine;

ide means for feeding strips of material- Fig. 5 is a vertical section, on an enlarged scale, through one of the feeding dogs and the arm upon which it is mounted, taken substantially along line 5-5 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 6 is a front end view of the feeding dog illustrated in Fig. 5;

Fig. '7 is a schematic front end View of a portion of the feeding apparatus including the feeding dog illustrated in Fig. 6, showing the action thereoiwhen an intermediate portion of a strip is above the last feeding dog;

Fig. 8 is a view similar to Fig. 7 showing the action of the mechanism when the last feeding dog is in engagement with the trailing end of a strip;

Fig. 9 is a vertical section taken substantially line 9-.; of Fig. 2;

Fig. 10 is a plan View of a handle formed by the present machine; and

Fig. 11 is an end View of the handle.

The present machine is designed to form han- Venn-anal paper shopping bags may be engaged in the holes i i. The strips are shaped by scoring the strips lengthwise along score lines 16 and bending the side edges upward to form a troughlike, rigid handle which will support the shopping bag cords in the central portion and which will be prevented from bending in the middle when held in the hand by the bracing effect of the upwardly bent side edges. The upper surface of each handle is preferably provided with a covering it of finished paper upon which printed matter may be placed so that the handles may act as advertising means. Either because of the usual practice of cutting the strips it from a lengthy, rolled-up strip of material, or because of the drawing effect of the adhered covering member i i, or for other reasons, the strips when supplied to the manufacturer of the handles are curved as illustrated in Fig. 1. Therefore, the central portion of a stack of strips which may be approximately twenty-four inches long is as much as three-fourths of an inch below the ends of the stack.

The machine of the present invention comprises vertical stack-guiding means including four vertical angle irons 29 adapted to embrace the corners of the stack. The front and rear spaces between the angle bars are preferably left open so that a stack may be manipulated between the angle bars, but the spaces at the ends are preferably closed by vertical sheets 2| so that the ends of a stack will be maintained in vertical alignment. The sheets 2| preferably are slightly closer together toward the top of the guiding means than they are toward the bottom thereof so as to insure free downward movement of the stack once it has been positioned in the upper end of the guiding means. The angle irons are mounted upon the standard of the machine and at an intermediate point thereof are braced by a C-shaped bar 22 which passes about the rear of the guiding means and is bolted to each of the four angle irons, the rear portion thereof preferably being spaced away from the rear angle irons so as to permit a hand to be inserted downwardly alongside of the stack. In order that a bundle of strips may be inserted in the guiding means, the upper ends of the front angle irons are cut away along the front faces thereof from the tops to a point adjacent the brace 22. Plates 23 are fixed to the corner angle irons and extend forwardly therefrom, terminating in hinge portions hingedly supporting hinged plates 24 which extend toward the stacking means. The plates 24 are beveled at their inner ends and the vertical sheets 2| are correspondingly beveled so that when the plates 24 are pressed toward the plates 23 the beveled ends are forced together so that the plates 24 form a continuation of the sheets 2|. Leaf Springs 25 are fixed to the plates 23 and thrust the plates 24 outwardly to the position shown in Fig. 9. However, the springs permit the plates to swing into alignment with the vertical sheets 2| when a stack of strips I3 is slid laterally between the plates 24. When the strips are arrested against the rear angle irons 26 the plates 24 swing outwardly to prevent the stack from toppling out of the guiding means and to hold the strips in vertical alignment until they pass below the cut-away portions of the front angle irons 20.

The lowermost strip of the stack rests upon a pair of bed rails 33 which extend substantially horizontally but are curved to conform to the average curvature of the strips being employed so that the rails 35 lie generally parallel to the strips |3 in the stack. The angle irons 23 are mounted upon the rails 38 and, as is seen in Fig. 3, the lowermost portions of the legs thereof which retain the stack against endwise movement are cut away so that the lowermost strip may be fed longitudinally from the stack toward the left end of Fig. 3 and in order that a pair of pusher fingers 3| may reciprocate alongside of the pair of angle irons at the right end of the stack in Fig. 3 to engage the rear end of the lowermost strip of the stack when it is desired that it be started on its step-by-step movement from beneath the stack. A plurality of feeding dogs 32 extend transversely of the space between the rails 39 in position to engage the rear edge of the lowermost strip when presented thereto in succession. Each of the dogs 32 projects upwardly from an arm 33 which underlies the rear rail and extends laterally from a hub 34 pivotally embracing a longitudinally extending support 35 preferably in the shape of a large, round member. Each hub 34 is of the same length so that the dogs 32 are equidistantly spaced. The hubs are retained on the support 35 by bolts 35 screwed into threaded holes in the support and extending outwardly through vertical slots 31 in the hubs. An anchoring pin 38 projects rearwardly from an upper part of each hub to anchor one end of a spring 39 tensioned between the anchoring pin and the bolt 35 so that the arm is normally caused to extend horizontally, as seen in Fig. 5, with the bolt 36 engaging the upper end of the slot 31. However, each dog may independently move vertically to accommodate the curvature of the stack and also to compensate for the difference in elevation of var ious portions of the bottom of the stack as the lowermost strip is being fed step by step therefrom. The dogs 32 therefore may be depressed below the lowermost portion of the rails 30 and may, when the stack is entirely removed, all lie in horizontal alignment projecting above the ends of the rails 30. Each dog preferably is associated with a forwardly projecting support portion 40 on which the trailing end of a strip may rest while the dog 32 engages the rear edge of the strip. The support portions 43 are of considerable length so that the support 35 may be reciprocated a length greater than the distance between dogs so as to insure engagement of each dog successively with the trailing edge of the strip. The rear surfaces oi the dogs are rounded, as seen in Fig. 6, so as to reduce the tendency of the dogs to retract a strip being fed forward, particularly when there are few strips in the stack. In order to maintain the strip in alignment a pair of guide wheels 4| are mounted on the front rail 30 and a side rail 42 is mounted on the rear rail 30.

The rearmost dog adjacent the fingers 3| will not pass to the rear of the stack when it is fully retracted, hence if it were not for other means for initiating movement of a bottom strip the dogs would reciprocate endlessly beneath the bottom of a stack without producing feeding movement. The initial movement of the bottom strip to bring it forward to a position such that the rearmost dog may engage its rear edge is accomplished by the fingers 3|. These fingers are mounted upon the lower ends of arms 45 which extend upwardly and are pivoted to the rear angle irons 25 on pivot members 46, the arms being connected together for movement in unison by a rigid cross brace 41. A clamp 4-3 adjacent the C- brace 22 supports the upper ends of downwardly extending rod springs 49, the ends of which are prevented from slipping laterally by the heads of screws which retain the fingers 3| on the rocking frame provided by the arms 45 and cross brace 41. The rod springs 49 preferably comprise the arms of a U-shaped rod, but other types of spring return means may be substituted therefor. A vertical brace 50 extends from the frame of the machine upwardly to a point adjacent the pivots 46 and is connected to the plate 2| forming the rear end of the stacking mechanism, the brace being spaced from the rear of the stacking mechanism a sufiicient distance to permit rocking of the cross brace 41. A chain attaching member 5| is mounted on the brace 50 and one end of a chain 52 is attached to the forward end thereof. A pulley support 53 extends rearwardly from one of the arms 45 and pivotally supports a first pulley 54 which is located between the chain attaching member 5| and the rear of the stack. A second pulley 55 is mounted adjacent and below the chain attaching member 5| on a fixed portion of the frame of the machine such as the forward rail 30. The chain 52 extends from the attaching member 5| forwardly and about pulley 54, then rearwardly and about pulley 55, then forwardly beneath the rail 30, and is attached to a slide 56 slidably mounted beneath the forward end of rail 30 and retained by guides 51 and 58 against lateral displacement. The forward tip 59 of the slide extends through the guide 58 and is so shaped as to prevent retraction of the slide be ond a desired limit even though the spring rods 49' tend to retract the slide to a greater extent.

In order that the slide may be moved forward when desired to thus cause pulley t4 and the attached fingers 3! to move rearwardly, cooperat- 'ing means are provided on the slide 56 and on the last dog in the series of dogs. The cooperating means comprises a projection 58 extending forwardly from the arm 33 of the last dog, as seen in Figs. 3 and 5. The rear edge of the projection ts is provided with a cam face 6! (Fig. '7) which engages an oppositely disposed cam face '82 on an abutment 53 extending downwardly from the lower surface of the slide 53 so that on the rearward movement of the dog assembly the projection '60 will be caused to pass beneath the abutment 63 even though the last dog is elevated. As long as the strip i3 being fed forward is depressing the last dog 32 the vertical edges of the members as and 63 will clear each other when the dog assembly is moving forward as seen in Fig. 7. However, if the trailing edge of the strip 13 is located beyond the point to which the last dog 32 is retracted, then the spring 3e associated with the last dog will cause upward movement thereof to an extent sufiicient to permit engagement of the vertical faces of the members at and 63 when the dog assembly moves forward. The extent of movement is such that the fingers 31 are retracted from beneath the rear edge of the stack, thus causing the rear of the stack to drop onto the end portions of the rails 30. At this position the rear edge of the lowermost strip may be engaged by the fingers 3! which push the lowermost strip forwardly a distance sufficient that the rearmost dog may engage the rear edge thereof. The proportioning of parts is such that the forward movement of the fingers 3! is accomplished while the dog assembly is moving toward the rear; therefore, an unbroken succession of strips will be fed in endto-end relation to the operating mechanism.

In order to have a complete understanding of the instant machine, sufficient thereof is illustrated and described to explain the general characteristics thereof. The operating machine preferably comprises a frame upon which is mounted a reduction gear assembly 10. The gears thereof are driven by belt means H extending to a source of power (not shown). A shaft leading from the reduction gear assembly supports one element 12 of a clutch, the element i2 being under control of a shifting fork 13 from which a rod leads to a clutch lever conveniently located (not shown). The clutch element i2 may be shifted into engagement with a driven clutch member H1 mounted upon a driven shaft supported in a pair of brackets E5. The driven shaft supports a brakedrum 16 upon which is located an eccentric pin driving a main crank rod TI. The main crank rod H is pivotally connected to the lower end of a vertically reciprocating post '18 which is slidably guided in a bearing 19 mounted upon the frame. A brake band 80 extends about drum 16 and is connected to a brake lever Bi by means of which reciprocation of the post it may be quickly arrested when the clutch is disengaged. Other means Well known in the art may be provided for controlling the clutch and brake, and automatic safety mechanism may be incorporated if desired. A sprocket chain 85 driven from the shaft which supports the brake drum drives an auxiliary shaft 86 suitably mounted in one of the supports it and in an auxiliary support- 8?. The free end of shaft as supports acrank 8-8 from which a con-- necting rod 89 extends to the rear end of the dog supporting rod 35. The dog assembly is therefore reciprocated in unison with the vertical reciprocaticnscf the post i8.

A collar '96 on the upper end of the post '18 supports a forwardly extending bracket 91 upon which a knife and die assembly is mounted. The assembly comprises a knife 95 adapted to sever successive handle blanks from the strip. Forwardly thereof are punches 95 for forming the holes 14 and slots IS in the blank, and forwardly therefrom is a forming die '9? adapted to bend the blank downwardly along the crease lines It. The knife and die assembly is vertically guided by guide pins 98 extending through guide openings in a die bed block as. The bed block supports the fixed bending members It?) and a die member H for cooperation with the punches 96. A fixed hold-down IE2 is mounted upon the rear of the bed block and a removable hold-down 163 is mounted at the front thereof, the same being provided with a handle Iii-4 by means of which it may be withdrawn, and the machine being provided with a latch [65 by means 'of which it is retained in operating position. The knife 95 cooperates with a knife block me which is vertically movable against the upward thrust of a spring I01, thus permitting the ends of the strip to move downwardly as the knife cuts a blank therefrom, and then forcing the end of the strip back against the lower surfaces of the holddowns. Punching eliminator tubes It's extend laterally and downwardly from beneath the holes in the dies where the openings M are formed so as to prevent the small discs punched from the blanks from blocking the delivery chute. The chute comprises spaced angle bars [09 and curved spring retainer rods H0 which lead the stack of nested blanks into a trough I H from which they may be removed for packaging. It is to be appreciated that the details of the forming and delivery mechanism may be varied according to the teaching of the art in order that the same or other articles may be formed from the same or other types of material.

Having illustrated and described a preferred embodiment of the invention, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the invention permits of modification in detail and arrangement. I claim as my invention all such modifications as come within the true spirit and scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. Means to feed individual strips of material step by step in one direction from the bottom of a stack of strips, comprising a plurality of dogs engageable with the bottom of said stack, means reciprocating all of said dogs in said direction a distance slightly greater than the spacing between individual dogs, resilient means urging each of said dogs upwardly against the bottom of said stack, a movable member adapted in one position to retain the rearward edge of the lowermost strip in an elevated position, means associated with the foremost dog for withdrawing said member when the trailing edge of a strip is engaged by said foremost dog, and means for returning said movable member to its retaining position when said foremost dog is being retracted whereby the trailing edge of a succeeding strip is moved forwardly in position to be engaged by the rearmost dog.

2. A feeding mechanism for feeding a sheet of material step by step from the bottom of a stack of sheets, comprising a plurality of reciprocating dogs underlying the stack and equidistantly spaced in line in the direction of feeding, means to reciprocate said dogs in unison, resilient means urging each dog upwardly independently of the other dogs so that each dog may engage the trailing edge of a sheet in turn, a finger normally extending beneath the rear edge of the stack, and finger retracting mechanism operated by the one of said dogs adjacent the forward edge of the stack when it is elevated to engage the trailing edge of a sheet being fed from beneath the stack.

3. A feeding mechanism for feeding a sheet of material step by step from the bottom of a stack of sheets, comprising a plurality of reciprocating dogs underlying the stack and equidistantly spaced in line in the direction of feeding, means to reciprocate said dogs in unison, resilient means urging each dog upwardly independently of the other dogs so that each dog may engage the trailing edge of a sheet in turn, a finger normally extending beneath the rear edge of the stack,

finger retracting mechanism operated by the one of said dogs adjacent the forward edge of the stack when it is elevated to engage the trailing edge of a sheet being fed from beneath the stack, and spring means to return said finger to its normal position while said one dog is being retracted whereby a succeeding sheet is moved forward in position to be engaged b the first in line of said dogs.

4. The combination set forth in claim 3 wherein said finger retracting mechanism comprises a slide arranged adjacent said one dog, aprojection on said one dog, a chain attaching member located in a fixed position spaced from the rear of said stack, a first pulley fixed to said finger, a second pulley adjacent said chain attaching member, a chain extending from said chain attaching member forwardly about said first pulley, then rearwardly about said second pulley, and then forwardly to said slide, and means on said slide engageable by said projection when said one dog is elevated.

5. In a machine of the character described, a

plurality of substantially aligned, horizontally reciprocating dogs, resilient means urging each of said dogs upwardly independently of the rest of said dogs, a finger movably mounted adjacent the first in line of said dogs, and means connecting the last in line of said dogs to said finger when said last in line dog is elevated for causing simultaneous movement of said finger and said dogs.

6. In a machine of the character described, a plurality of substantially aligned, horizontally reciprocating dogs, resilient means urging each of said dogs upwardly independently of the rest of said dogs, a finger movably mounted adjacent the first in line of said dogs, and means connectin the last in line of said dogs to said finger when said last in line dog is elevated for causing simultaneous movement of said finger and said dogs, said means comprising a movement reversing device whereby said finger and said dogs move in opposite directions.

7. In a machine of the character described, a plurality of substantially aligned, horizontally reciprocating dogs, resilient means urging each of said dogs upwardly independently of the rest of said dogs, a finger movably mounted adjacent the first in line of said dogs, means connecting the last in line of said dogs to said finger when said last in line dog is elevated for causing simultaneous movement of said finger and said dogs, said means comprising a movement reversing device whereby said finger and said dogs move in opposite directions, and a spring for returning said finger while said dogs are being retracted.

IVAN A. WILLIAMS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 539,598 Stone et a1 May 21, 1895 1,236,054 Clark Aug. 7, 1917 1,283,659 Cameron Nov. 5, 1918 1,852,221 Snow Apr. 5, 1932 2,270,871 Felber Jan. 27, 1942 

